A 23-member international delegation comprising elected officials and representatives from multiple European nations, the United States, and the UK was denied entry to the West Bank, with participants detained at a border crossing for several hours.
The group included four elected representatives: Labour MP Clive Lewis, Scottish National Party MP Lara Bird, Scottish Greens MSP Kate Nevens, and former Labour MP Sam Tarry. The delegates were scheduled to participate in Progressive International’s Second Ramallah Congress, a conference organized in partnership with Birzeit University designed to convene Palestinian academics, students, and civil society organizations.
The delegation was held at the Allenby/King Hussein Bridge by Israeli forces for approximately nine hours before being turned away without stated reasons. According to Tarry, the exclusion appeared to be a deliberate political decision to prevent international observers from documenting conditions in the West Bank. Lewis characterized the experience as an interrogation, describing raised voices and questioning about the delegation’s purpose and intentions.
The barring occurred amid reported tensions surrounding Palestinian olive harvesting activities. UN aid coordination office data indicated at least 160 settler attacks linked to olive harvesting occurred in early October, frequently involving Israeli military participation or protection. Israeli media earlier reported that the defence minister had instructed officials to issue exclusion orders against activists in olive-harvesting areas. Recent incidents included Israeli forces confronting European diplomats and approximately 80 harvest volunteers, including a US congressional candidate.
Delegation members and organizers framed the denial of entry as an attempt to prevent international witnesses from observing developments in occupied territories. Progressive International’s political coordinator stated that exclusion attempts would reinforce the delegation’s commitment to engagement with Palestinian communities.
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